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Friday, April 27, 2012

One of the very best things about traveling for my "quilt life" is getting to meet the extremely nice people in the guilds where I teach or lecture. This week I was down in Philomath, Oregon, near Corvallis addressing the April meeting of the Mary's River Quilt Guild at the Benton County Historical Museum.

As my lecture didn't end until around 9:30 p.m. and it is a 2 hour drive from Philomath to Washougal, it was arranged that I spend the night at a guild member's home.

Sharon and Lyle Fries gave me such a warm welcome and made me so comfortable. By the time I left we had become good friends.

Lyle had been a software engineer for HP for over 40 years before retiring...and one of the things he does now is exquisite cross stitching. I just have to share the fabulous Christmas stocking Lyle made for his wife Sharon...

It was his first ever project, and that is the truth!
Here are some detail shots...

He listens to audio books while he stitches.
I find this absolutely extraordinary and so wonderful! I was very privileged to be their guest, and appreciated their kindness so much. Thank you, Lyle and Sharon!

One of the guild members also shared some great stitching work with me. Her name is Linda Brown, and she makes wedding dresses and other fine clothes...which translates into her quilt work. She had bought my book and was inspired by the flat doll project to make her very own take on it, creating a CQ bodice with full skirt....I just love what she did with it...

Complete with tiny handbag with teenier tassle!
Linda made me so happy, creating something original and her own from her experience perusing my book. A quilt author could ask for nothing more...

Thanks to everyone at the guild in Philomath for making my experience there very special.. ;-)

Monday, April 23, 2012

Before anything else, I want to thank Everyone for their kind congratulatory comments on my last post. The best part of the Saga of the Lost Quilt was hearing from you all and feeling first your sympathy when my book's cover quilt was lost, then your shared happiness with me when it was found, and that is the truth! It is a story with a very happy ending...my hope is that all lost quilts can find their way home too.

I've been traveling a lot this month...and also--I think I can say this--working on some projects that are under wraps, with the goal of them being published one day--so I haven't been able to put them here on the blog, much as I would love to!

It is called a "Wee Farmscape"--inspired by the Kansas heartland where the retreat is. ;-)

It measures about 7" x 7".
In this 6 hour class, I want to combine and cover two subjects:
The first is how to add applique to a crazy quilt block, by introducing some new supplies that make it very easy and accurate. (At least, these supplies are new to me.) I think applique is totally underused in crazy quilting!
The second subject in this class is how to use waste canvas in your block, whether in a free form style or along a seam treatment.

I have Pamela Kellogg to thank for learning this approach to waste canvas, and she has most graciously and generously agreed to let me use some of her charted seam designs in class as well. Pam, you are the very best!

I hope I will see some of you in Wichita next November... ;-) Judith Baker Montano and Candace Kling will be returning yet again, and it is going to be a very special gathering....